(1) Novel

It's the favorite literary genre of Naturalist writers. The novel is big and baggy, and it allowed Naturalist writers to observe and record social environments in great detail.

(2) Narrative detachment

Naturalist writers thought of themselves as social "scientists." They wanted to observe and understand how society functioned. For this reason, their work often takes on a detached and clinical narrative tone. Scientists have to be detached and clinical, don't they?

(3) Determinism

Forget about free will in Naturalist fiction. We'll find that in this school of literature, characters are often controlled by forces beyond their power. If we're a product of our environment, then that environment, according to Naturalists, is going to determine who we are and what happens to us. If you don't like it, you can lump it.

(4) Pessimism

Let's not look for happy endings in Naturalist fiction. We won't find many. People end up dead, or poorer than they were to start with, or just plain miserable. Pro-tip: Read Naturalism with a big pint of Cherry Garcia to help quell the depression.

(5) Social environment

Naturalist writers were interested in understanding how social environments impact people's characters and development. Let's face it: it makes a difference whether we grew up in the slums of Calcutta or on the Upper East Side of Manhattan.

(6) Heredity and Human nature

We may not only inherit our mom's pointy nose and our dad's big teeth, we may also inherit our mom's pessimism or our dad's optimism. In other words, we often inherit not only physical traits, but also character traits from our parents. Naturalist writers are really interested in understanding how certain social characteristics are passed on from one generation to the next.

(7) Poverty

Poverty's a big theme in Naturalist fiction. Naturalist writers were so interested in writing about poverty because it's an example of an extreme social and physical environment. If we're starving, do we steal? Do we kill for money? How does poverty influence the choices we make?

(8) Survival

Who survives in social contexts? Who dies? Why? Survival of the fittest is the name of the game, and in their fiction Naturalists like to explore who's fit and who ain't.

(10) Darwinism

Yes, our ancestors were apes. Thanks to Charles Darwin, we now know that species develop as a result of evolution. Darwin's ideas, or "Darwinism," were very influential on writers who identified as Naturalist.

(11) Realism

A literary movement that predated Naturalism, which placed an emphasis on portraying society and personality as they really are. Naturalism is an offshoot of Realism. Think of it as Realism's younger, grittier cousin.